The Wager
by Snm1000
Summary: Once upon a time a Queen created a game, a King agreed to play. Sarah Williams is the pawn...
1. Chapter 1

Prologue

He watched over the labyrinth from the highest balcony of the castle. It was the darkest part of the night; the city was silent around him. He was lost in his thoughts, wondering just how that girl had managed to win. He was waiting, he knew she'd come, that she would not be able to resist. He didn't have to wait long. The breeze picked up for a moment, blowing the long strands of his hair across his face. He kept his gaze fixed on the labyrinth, he knew exactly what was happening behind him.

"You failed." Mara's smug, melodic voice cut through the silence of the night. She appeared from nothing, the deep grey silk of her gown seemed too light to be real, disappearing into the shadows that surrounded her, where she was the most at home.

He only responded when he sensed her approach, "I am well aware." He eyes still studying his labyrinth.

"So, on to round two."

"Yes, round two."

"How old is the girl?" Mara asked, her gaze following his, wondering what he could be looking for.

"Fifteen." He bit out.

"So, a little over six years."

"Twenty-five hundred days." He clarified.

"Oh, plenty of time then. From what I saw in her little dream you could win round two tonight." Her cruel voice teased.

"She's a child."

"Maybe in her world, whereas here…"

"You really can be ridiculous, Mara." He spat out in annoyance, inciting a cackle from her.

"Remember our wager. If you fail round two…" Her voice took on the sing song quality that he hated.

"You don't have to remind me." He gave her the barest of glances, her pale skin glowed in the shadows, she was a beautiful and terrible sight.

"Oh, now Jareth, aren't you having fun yet?" Mara asked, not expecting an answer. As easily as she appeared, the Queen of Nightmares dissolved into the shadows, leaving the Goblin King, the Prince of Dreams alone once more.

All their lives they had worked side by side, often competing with each other, using humans to prove their power. This latest wager gave him pause, he had easily agreed to it before, but now that it was in motion it made him uneasy. Something about that young girl had stirred something in him. He couldn't name it, he didn't want to understand it, but it nagged at him. Her spirit, her determination, it had impressed him. She had won her brother back, thereby giving round one Mara. He thought of the next round, either outcome seemed unsavory. He let out a frustrated sigh.

Sarah Williams; she had no idea what was in store for her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: As with my last story, I don't own Labyrinth.**

* * *

Chapter One

Day 244

She couldn't tell where she was, but she knew he was there. Just like before, the air changed when he was near, and just like before she was filled with fear and excitement at the thought of him. She looked around her, bracing herself for the moment he came into view. Her mind puzzled over where she was for only a moment, when he was near everything else fell away.

She heard him before she saw him.

"Don't you want to come back, Sarah? Don't you want to come back to me?" His low, accented voice filled her mind, waking something in her.

She was unable to answer. Her mouth gaped open, emitting a faint sound, something between a cry and a moan as she felt his hand glide up her hip, gripping her waist. She did not resist when he pulled her to him, her back flush to him, his mouth so close to her ear she could nearly feel the touch.

"Tell me, Sarah." He whispered, lingering on her name as if it was a term of endearment, a promise of things she didn't quite understand.

"Tell me you want me." He commanded.

She began to turn in his arms, ready to face him. "I-I-I-"

Sarah's eyes snapped open. She wasn't in a shadowy room with _him_. She was at home in her bed, her clock radio playing jarringly loud, announcing the beginning of another school day. She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to block out the dream, but it was useless. She was convinced she could still feel his hand on her waist, claiming her.

She shook her head and hopped off the bed. It was really getting ridiculous, it had been eight months since she had run the labyrinth and the dreams would not stop. They didn't come every night, thankfully, but she had lost count somewhere in the thirties. Every time the experience began to fade from her mind he would be waiting for her in her dreams, ready to remind her. During the light of day, she often doubted the experience, blaming it on her over active imagination, but there he would be, waiting in her dreams, ready to sweep away her doubts.

He seemed intent on filling her mind, until every waking moment and every dream was dedicated to him.

* * *

" _What will the second round be? Jareth asked from his chair by the fireplace._

 _As was her usual way of doing things, Mara didn't answer the question directly, "What is more powerful, fear or desire?"_

" _Fear or desire?" Jareth repeated, turning toward the dark window where Mara was casually perched, her eyes, black pools on her white face._

" _Yes, nightmares or dreams?" She clarified._

" _Dreams of course." Jareth answered, turning his gaze back toward the fire, the flames giving off the only light in the room._

" _That's what I thought you would say." Mara replied, a bit of a laugh in her words._

" _Again, what will the second challenge entail?"_

" _We will discover the answer to that question. We will finally know what really rules the human soul." She explained._

 _Jareth couldn't stop the predatory smile as he looked into the dancing flames of the fire, Mara moved to see his face, but remained off to the side, more vapor than solid._

" _I see you understand." She gave a throaty chuckle at the look in his eye._

" _Yes, an elegant idea."_

" _I thought you'd enjoy it." Mara made her way back to the familiar darkness. Before turning to leave, she paused, her dangerous eyes glinting with malice, even in the shadows. "I'll even give you a year head start, before I begin to play."_

" _Always the generous one, Mara." Jareth replied from the confines of his seat, though he knew Mara was already gone, before he could get the last word in._

 _The Goblin King, the Prince of Dreams, chuckled to himself, imagining who their little pawn would be. The next runner they had decided, a girl most likely. Jareth smiled, yes, this little game of Mara's would be great fun. How mad she'll be when she loses, he thought smugly, Mara never could understand humans quite like he did. Humans will go to great lengths to ignore their nightmares, but dreams, well, that was another story indeed._

* * *

 **Author's Note: I'm sure you've all figured it out but just to be sure I wanted to point out that the second half in italics is a flashback of sorts. I'll probably be doing that here and there during this story.**

 **P.S. A little reader participation if you're interested. I'm developing a new 'world' for this story, Mara's kingdom, and I need nightmares. I have my own, from childhood and now, but they aren't enough. What should live in the world of nightmares? P.M. me if you have any suggestions!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: I don't own Labyrinth.**

 **Hello everyone, I know its been a long time. Too long! But I've been in New York and celebrating my birthday, too many distractions to write well. I have to admit I'm a little concerned about this story, I have a good idea of where I want it to go but I'm having a little trouble getting it started. I think I'm figuring it out though, besides the lovely thing about fanfic is if I turn down a path that isn't working out I can always return to the drawing board. Hope you are all well and thank you to those to wrote about nightmares. I have another request, I've been doing some research but I have another write in for you. Do you know of any dark figures from different cultures around the world that have to do with nightmares or dreams.** **Melinoë** **good example of what I'm looking for. Thanks, enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter Two

Day 360

"Sarah." He called. His voice calm, barely above a whisper, but it surrounded her. He always whispered to her, a way to pull her in, lure her close enough to touch. A spider luring a fly.

"Sarah." He repeated.

"What do you want?" She called out, as she turned in circles, searching for him. She was swallowed by darkness. If the ground hadn't felt so solid beneath her feet she would have thought she was floating in space.

At last he appeared in the distance.

"What do you want?" She called out, her voice so loud in her head compared to the soft lullaby of his.

"Don't you know?" He replied. She could still see him in the distance but his voice seemed to come from close by, almost as if it was in her head.

"What?" She whispered.

"What I want, precious thing, is to give you everything." He answered, amusement clear in his voice.

"Everything?"

"Everything you desire."

She closed her eyes for a moment to try to clear her confused mind. When she opened them he was in front of her. His gloved hand caressed her cheek. She realized she was leaning into his touch, teetering on the edge of letting go, of letting him give her what she wanted most…

"Sarah! Wake up!"

"Huh?" Sarah's eyes snapped open, disoriented and blinded by the harsh light, she looked around. She had fallen asleep in class, again. This time it was chemistry, last week it had been Algebra II. All her classmates had left for their next class, leaving her alone with the teacher.

"Did you stay up late reading again?" Mrs. Carter asked, slightly sympathetic.

"Sorry, I haven't been sleeping well." Sarah apologized while collecting her books and purse.

"Did you know you talk in your sleep?"

Sarah stilled as panic and embarrassment flooded her, she knew what, or who, her dream had been about. What had she said out loud?

"What did I say?"

"You kept asking 'what do you want'."

"That's all?" She asked, feeling a little relieved.

"Just before I woke you, you said an unusual name. Jareth, I think it was." Mrs. Carter answered.

Sarah did her best to seem nonchalant, "That is an unusual name. I don't know where I got that from." She gave a forced laugh before ducking out into the crowded hallway, headed to her next class.

She kept her eyes on the floor as she made her way through the hall. She was going to have to be more careful, she couldn't keep falling asleep in the middle of her classes. For one, most teachers were not as understanding as Mrs. Carter, and second and most important, she couldn't start blabbing about a goblin king around a class full of sixteen and seventeen year olds. She would never live down the embarrassment.

She had never really cared that she wasn't the most popular girl in school, she had her friends, but she was not so immune that she could easily handle the hell her life would be if certain secrets came to light. Having a sex dream in the middle of class was embarrassing enough. Having a sex dream about a magical king that arrived in showers of glitter and wore more makeup than she did was mortifying.

It had been nearly a year, almost to the day, since she first came face to face with _him_. She had thought it was her mind being difficult, unable to let go of the odd pull she felt to him, so it came out in her dreams. Now, she had different thoughts, he had to be behind it somehow. It wouldn't be the first time he had given her a dream.

Sarah sighed as she opened her locker. She supposed it was some sort of punishment she had to deal with for beating him in the labyrinth. She should have expected that she wouldn't get out of that mess without some punishment for escaping. If she was completely honest with herself she could think of much worse forms of punishment than the type of dreams he was giving her.

It needed to stop, though. She wanted to move on with her life, including living in her world of fairy tales. That would be nearly impossible until the dreams stopped. She had to figure out a way to end them. Even if that meant calling for him, again.

* * *

Jareth watched Sarah go on with the rest of her school day. It would almost be too easy at this point to win the second challenge. He just wanted to wait until she was a little older, a little more familiar with the world. He couldn't help but admit his dreams did give Sarah a lovely blush to her cheeks.

Lost in his thoughts as he watched his target he didn't realize he was no long alone until Mara's shadowy reflection met his gaze in the crystal. He immediately dissolved the orb, guarding Sarah from Mara's gaze. Though, he knew full well she could watch the girl just as easily as he.

"Mara." He said curtly.

Mara gave a throaty chuckle, it was as unpleasant as glass breaking, "Hello, Jareth. Having fun with our little toy?"

"She's not our toy." He bit out.

"True, so far you have had all the fun. But in five days you'll have to share." Mara's smile was bone chilling.

"Yes, I'm aware. I've been meaning to renegotiate the terms." Jareth said hesitantly, depending on her mood Mara could be impossible. His simple request could lead her to turn the world inside out.

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion, "How so?"

"Give me another year, she still a child. When she's eighteen she'll be an adult, then you can have your fun."

Fire flashed in Mara's dark eyes, "No! Don't tell me you're trying to get me to go easy on the girl! Don't you remember how she bested you? How she rejected your offer!? Why on earth would you want me to go easy on her!?" Mara's voice was a screech at this point.

Jareth opened his mouth to speak but Mara continued, "You're getting soft! You used to be as ruthless as I am, what's happened? Don't tell me that little offer of love you gave to that girl was real!"

"Of course, not! You know it's all part of the game." Jareth shot up from his seat, the accusations of actually having feelings for the girl were ridiculous.

"Then you'll have to prove it. In five days, I'll begin. You have until then to win without me even having a turn. After that its fair game." Mara hissed, meeting him eye to eye.

Jareth turned away from her, he didn't like being so close to her. "Very well, Mara. Have it your way, but know if I think you've gone too far…" He trailed off.

"Yes, I know exactly what you can do. You remember the rules, you may be Goblin King but you're not above everyone." She reminded before vanishing.

Jareth looked out the window, across the labyrinth. Five days, he supposed he could go ahead and end round two, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Dread filled him as he knew what was waiting for Sarah in her sleep. He could only hope Mara would start slow.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: First off, I don't own Labyrinth. Though I somehow ended up with two copies of the book. I don't know how, I ordered one off E-Bay, then out of the blue one day I received another one in the mail. Weird, right?**

 **Thank you to everyone that's commented and PM'd me. Thanks for the nightmare entity ideas, there are so many I've found but I still like getting ideas from others. Unlike my last story, which I had a very strong idea of how I would write it, this story is a little open. I have several ideas so a few opinions from others is helpful sometimes.**

 **Enjoy Chapter 3!**

* * *

Chapter 3

Day 365

Sarah raced through the corridors, randomly turning left and right as she tried to make her way through the labyrinth. The setting sun grew weaker and weaker as storm clouds rolled in, leaving her to make her way through the maze in the murky light the filtered through the clouds. Thunder rumbled somewhere in the distance, deep and loud enough that she felt it in her chest. The only other sounds were her labored breathing and rhythmic footsteps on the hard ground.

She couldn't remember why she was running or what she was looking for. All she could feel was the rising panic that time was slipping away. She stopped at a dead end, two doors stood before. Their metallic door knockers depicted funny little creatures, but to her horror they began to morph into snarling monsters. She let out a cry before turning around, desperate to flee.

She took two steps before slamming into another person. She looked up, the cry for help died in her throat as she met his eyes. The uneven pupils were framed by wild blonde hair that blew in the wind of the oncoming storm. She heard him laugh at her, the sound sent a chill down her spine.

The doors forgotten, Sarah backed away from the stranger. He inched toward her, laughing again when she backed into the bit of wall between the two doors. Trapped, she fought off tears as the man reached her.

"Right of left?" He asked with a smirk.

"Wh-?" Words failed her as he seemed to tower over her.

"Right or left?" He repeated impatiently.

Still Sarah could not answer.

Seemingly annoyed, he shrugged and gripped the loose fabric of her shirt collar, "Fine then, I'll choose." He said, shoving her towards the left door as it swung open on its own.

Sarah tried to fight him off. Desperately, she pulled at his fingers but he was infinitely stronger than her. She turned her head to the side, enough to see never ending darkness behind the door. She began to kick at him as he lifted her up by her shirt.

With his free hand, he grasped her face, forcing her to meet his eyes once again, "You should have chosen." He said before dropping her into the darkness, his laugh echoing as she screamed.

It seemed like she fell forever before she was suddenly stopped by someone. She felt two hand catch her under her arms, then her legs. As her eyes adjusted to the dim light she let out another horrified scream as she saw dozens of hands reaching for her. They were holding her up but quickly they began to pull at her roughly, clawing at her, pulling her hair. The buttons on her shirt began to pop off as the fabric was stretched too far in opposite directions. Soon the bruising fingers began to dig into her flesh. She screamed with all her might as the hands began to tear her apart.

Sarah thrashed around her bed as the screaming woke her. When she opened her eyes, and looked around she began to calm. She was in her bedroom. Her clock radio told her it was three in the morning, it had been her own screaming that had pulled her from the nightmare. She rubbed her face as she tried to push the images from her mind. It had been the Goblin King again, but this time he did not have seduction on his mind. The Helping Hands had ripped her to pieces. She shook her head to rid herself of the thought.

It had been a year now, maybe he was reminding her and thought her dreams of seduction were not enough.

With alert eyes, she made her way out of her room and into the hallway. Her father and step mother were sound asleep across the hall, their door shut tight, blocking her screams. Before heading to the kitchen, she paused at Toby's bedroom door. As she had done countless times in the past year, she slowly she cracked the creaking door open. From the threshold, she could see him sleeping peacefully, her old stuffed teddy bear snuggled against him. She let out a sigh of relief and closed the door, luckily her little brother seemed to be spared from nightmares of their ordeal.

The full moon cast its pale light through the kitchen window, but still uneasy, Sarah flicked the light switch by the door. Nothing happened, she repeatedly flipped the switch back and forth, willing the overhead lights to come on. With a defeated huff, she made her way to the sink for a drink of water. The tap seemed unnaturally loud in the quiet house as she filled her cup.

As she sipped from the glass she looked out the large window above the sink. She froze and her eyes widened at the sight. Silhouetted against the moon, a large barn owl peered back at her as it perched on a tree branch. Her cup forgotten, it shattered as it hit the sink, the sound echoed through the room. Sarah looked down at the glass fragments for a moment before returning her eyes to the owl. She knew it was no coincidence, it was no ordinary owl.

She watched as the owl slowly blinked once, then silently spread its wings and flew away. Sarah continued to stare out the window, among the glittering shards of glass, and watched the owl until it disappeared into the night.

* * *

Jareth had waited outside the Williams' house for hours. He knew Mara would waste no time, and he wanted to make sure Sarah was not unfairly tortured by his opponent. He had not planned on her seeing him. The fear radiated off her when she noticed him in the tree. The look in her eyes nagged at him. It had been foolish to think Mara would hold back for the first nightmare.

Returning to his world he impulsively veered right, away from the labyrinth and the Goblin Castle, toward the forbidding forest that surrounded the fortress Mara called home.

His enhanced owl vision made it easy to spot the Queen. She seemed to be waiting for him on the top of one of the several towers that made up the castle. Her pale skin caught the light from the moon, causing it to glow against the black stone of the tower.

"Jareth, what a surprise." She greeted him, clearly expecting his appearance.

"Mara." He said curtly after returning to his natural form.

"Why so grim, Jareth? Are you not enjoying our game now that I get a turn?"

Jareth didn't answer but stared back at his counterpart. He rarely gave her more than a glance, especially when she was in her natural state. Eyes so dark and deep set they seemed to be missing, only the glint form the light gave away their presence. Her eerily white skin was stretched tight over her sharp cheek bones, too sharp and pronounced to be beautiful. In fact, Jareth concluded, as they stared each other down, that everything about Mara was too much. Her mouth too wide, her teeth too pointed, even her arms and fingers were too long. It was as if she was a reflection of a beautiful woman that had been stretched and distorted.

It was uncomfortable to study her for long. She, on the other hand, seemed to enjoy his attention, taking the time to practically strut toward him, though her legs appeared to be more smoke than solid limbs.

Jareth looked away, inciting a rasping chuckle from Mara.

"I bet I know why you came." She paused a moment, smiling to herself. "You didn't like what I did."

Jareth remained silent for a long moment before he finally spoke.

"Do not use me in your nightmares."

"I can use whatever or whoever I want in my creations." She replied lightly.

With narrowed eyes, he turned his gaze back to Mara. His anger only seemed to thrill her.

"If you wanted to set rules you should have said something before we began." Something like a giggle escaped Mara as she spoke. It made the hairs on the back of his neck raise.

"Why use me?"

"Because I want to win. What better way than to make her afraid of you. Well, more than she already was." She shrugged her thin shoulders as she spoke, as if it should be obvious.

"Stop." He said simply.

"No." She repeated in kind.

Jareth's hands clenched as he tried to control the frustrated anger coursing through him.

She noticed the gesture and smiled, "You must simply make your dreams better. You have 2,135 days."

Jareth did not respond, she was right. He had no ability to keep her from using him in nightmares, just as she had no ability to control the dreams he created. He turned his back to her and effortlessly returned to his owl form, ready to return home.

Mara watched Jareth until his was a white speck against the inky night sky, a satisfied grin on her face. She had suspected for a year now that the human girl had managed to get under his skin. Jareth would never admit to her it was true, but she saw it as she watched the first round. He wanted her. Mara knew it would be Jareth's weakness, and she would use it to win the game.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 4

Day 500

The next few months were hell, at least for Sarah.

Her unsettling, yet admittedly pleasant, dreams of the Goblin King had developed into frightening nightmares. On the nights the dreams returned she would wake up relieved. On the nights of the nightmares she could barely function the next day. She had become jumpy and extremely sleep deprived. Her grades started slipping and her stepmother was pushing for her to see a psychiatrist after their doctor recommended it.

For Sarah, a shrink was out of the question. She wasn't in a mental ward yet, but telling an adult that she was having reoccurring dreams and nightmares about a Goblin King, a magic being that had kidnapped her brother and forced her to solve his labyrinth. Well, Sarah knew how that would turn out; with an open-ended reservation for a padded cell.

She told herself over and over again that she would get over it, that the dreams and nightmares would fade with time. Unfortunately, as the majority of each week was filled with these terrors and sensual dreams, Sarah began to lose faith. How would she manage to live her life? What if they went on for years?

Once again, she began to feel the temptation to summon the Goblin King to demand the torture end, she couldn't let go of the idea that he was behind this all. Something in the back of her mind stopped her from doing just that, a primal instinct that warned her of a danger she couldn't quite understand. Summoning him would only pull her further into his world, something she knew she didn't want.

Before going to bed, Sarah pulled out a calendar. At her vanity, she counted up the days and weeks since she had defeated the Goblin King, it totaled five hundred days. It seemed so long ago, in that time she had finished her sophomore and junior years of high school. Yet, the dreams and nightmares made it impossible to put it behind her.

She laid in bed, her window opened to let in the cool, early summer air. She fought sleep, last night had been a dream, so she knew what was coming. Just before her eyes became too heavy to keep open, she heard the unmistakable screech of a barn owl.

* * *

Absentmindedly rolling a crystal orb from one gloved hand to the other, Jareth stared out, unseeing, across his kingdom from the top of a tower. He had just watched Sarah experience the nightmare Mara had created.

It was in keeping with her theme of using Sarah's time in the labyrinth against her; against him, really. This particular horror involved the oubliette and an infestation of over-sized insects. Once Sarah managed to wake from the nightmare she spent the next hour brushing the memory of scurrying legs from her skin.

Jareth let out a sigh, tomorrow he and Mara had agreed they would both abstain from playing with the girl. Then he would have a chance to wipe those images Mara had created from her mind. He had begun to watch her closely, looking for a clue to what her hopes and desires were, looking for something that would help tip the odds to his favor.

It wasn't a terrible task, she was a pretty young thing, it was clear she would grow into a beautiful woman. His kind were not inclined toward sentimentality, emotions of love, or feeling of guilt, but he found himself feeling terrible for the girl. A moment of teenage frustration more than a year ago, and now she was the unknowing pawn in his game with Mara. He liked the girl, which made this little game a chore. He was as stuck as Sarah was though, he had no way out of his agreement with Mara. If he were to back out now the Queen of Nightmares would take out her anger on the girl. That was the last thing he wanted.

Wordlessly, he conjured an image of a peacefully sleeping Sarah, the image slightly distorted in the crystal. He needed to win the game, no matter how unsavory he found it, and he needed to do it as soon as possible. He had two thousand days to the end of the round, he felt certain Sarah's mind would not handle the stress for that long. He needed to plan carefully, rash actions would end his chances completely. He would start slowly, he thought with a smile, perhaps he will get some enjoyment in this mess after all.

* * *

Day 501

Along the edge of the forest, hidden among the dark leaves and snarled branches of a tree, the Queen of Nightmares, more vapor than solid, watched the Goblin King as he perched on the window sill of his bedroom. Her black eyes could make out the faint glow of a crystal. Mara's gaze narrowed and the dark smoke around her compressed for a moment, forming her long, pale hand long enough to snap a branch in frustration, the sap of the tree oozed out of the wound, thick and dark as blood.

Things were not going to plan at all. She knew Jareth had developed a soft spot for the girl, but she thought those feelings would have faded by now. Instead he was watching her more and more, with that ridiculous look on his face. Could he possibly be falling in love with the human? No, Mara reassured herself, love was nowhere on either of their radars, especially when it came to humans. They were playthings, without humans what would she do with all her beautiful creations? The creatures that populated her forest would be pointless without humans to unleash them on.

Mara closed her eyes for a moment, searching her mind for her ticket to win the round. She smiled wickedly as the idea came to her. It had been quite a long time since she had employed the methods of terror she was contemplating. So long in fact, that Jareth hadn't thought to ban her from using them in the game, it was a tactic that he found extremely distasteful. Mara's smile grew as she began to plan, tomorrow was Jareth's turn unfortunately. She made a sound of disgust imagining what romance novel fantasy he was cooking up.

Silently removing herself from the tree, Mara hovered above her beloved forest, the howls and grunts of her creations echoed through the trees as she made her way back to her cold stone fortress.

* * *

Sarah woke with a start, her skin raised in goosebumps, though the night was warm. A sense of dread overcame her, even without dreams or nightmares ruining her sleep she still felt unsettled. She couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.

Reluctantly, she got out of bed and crept to the window, expecting to see the familiar owl staring back at her. She was surprised to see nothing but the night sky, though the feeling remained. She continued to survey the view, looking for any movement that would give the observer away. Finally giving up, assuming it was her imagination she went back to bed.

The Queen of Nightmares hovered next to the girl's window. Her smoky form blended with the shadows across the house. She nearly growled as the ambivalence she felt toward the human soured, curdling into hatred. How could such a simple little thing be such a threat to her? Jareth may win round two, Mara thought with displeasure, but Sarah Williams will live to regret it.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 5

Day 502

Sarah's eyes reached the end of the page. She could not remember a single word of what she just read. She shook her head in attempt to revive herself and started to read the page again, only to get the same result. With a defeated sigh, she gave up and slammed the book shut. She tossed it to the foot of her bed with an air of distaste, as if it was the book's fault she couldn't focus.

She knew she was being ridiculous, she was going to have to go to sleep at some point. She was just delaying the inevitable. Last night had been a peaceful, dreamless sleep. Which meant tonight she would dream, about him. She let out a groan of frustration. When would he get tired of this and leave her alone?

She looked over at her alarm clock, it was nearly two in the morning. With school tomorrow, she knew she'd be dead on her feet, even if she fell asleep at that exact moment. Sarah rubbed her dry, scratchy eyes. The lids felt heavier and heavier. Defeated, she laid down, asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. Her last thought was that he would be waiting for her.

Several minutes passed before Sarah was jolted awake by the sound of her discarded book falling to the floor. The thud shot her heart into a panicked beat as she gasped in surprise. Even in the darkened room she knew who was standing at the end of her bed.

With the familiar arrogant smirk on his face, the Goblin King stepped forward. "Hello, Sarah."

"Go away." She squeaked out, her voice betraying her fear. The mantra 'just a dream, just a dream' repeated in her head.

"Are you quite sure?" He asked her, is voice low, his head tilted playfully to the side.

"Wh-what?"

"You were saying 'just a dream' over and over." He clarified, his eyes glittered with enjoyment at her discomfort.

"Oh." She replied, embarrassed she had been whispering to herself. She clamped her lips shut and bit the side of her mouth, willing her tongue not to betray her further.

He chuckled as he stepped even closer to her.

Sarah felt her face redden in embarrassment and anger. Finally finding her voice, she answered his question. "It is a dream. I know it is."

"Is that so? Tell me, Sarah, have you had prior dreams about me?" His voice was the same in the other dreams, edged with the accent that so often nearly hypnotized her.

"You know I have."

"Then, tell me, does it feel the same?" He slowly took the last few steps between them.

Still sitting up in her bed, the Goblin King towered over her. Sarah swallowed nervously, "Does what feel the same?"

"This." He answered as his gloved hand traced the line of her cheekbone, skirted the corner of her mouth and ended along her jaw.

Even after he pulled his hand away, Sarah could still feel the tingling pressure of his touch.

"No." She reluctantly admitted.

"Then perhaps, Precious, you aren't asleep."

Sarah closed her eyes, his smirking presence made it hard for her to think.

"Please stop." Her voice wavered a bit, but she kept her eyes shut tight to avoid his unsettling eyes.

"Stop what, Sarah?" He asked, his voice almost a whisper. Sarah tensed as he spoke, she could feel his breath on her cheek. He was nearly close enough to kiss her.

With eyes still closed she inhaled deeply, catching the pleasant scents of the labyrinth that clung to him, sun warmed stones, green hedges, and magic.

"The dreams, the nightmares." She whispered.

"I'm sorry, beautiful girl, but I can't do that." He answered with regret.

"Of course you can!" Her eyes snapped open, and looked directly into his.

"No, afraid not."

She silently pleaded with him, her eyes begging for reprieve.

With a sympathetic sigh, the Goblin King reached up and caressed her face once more. His unusual, mismatched pupils stared into her teary eyes. "Only you can end the dreams, and the nightmares."

"How?!" She gripped the blanket that sat across her lap, balling up the quilt in her fists as he returned to the end of her bed.

"How!? Tell me, how!" She repeated, but it was useless, he had already disappeared.

Sarah screwed her face up in a scowl as the alarm clock's buzzing pulled her from sleep. Blinking her eyes to adjust to the morning sun filtering through the , the memories of her dream replayed in her mind. It had seemed so real, but of course it was all just another dream.

She got out of bed with a sigh and headed toward her door. A flash of white in the periphery of her vision stopped her in her tracks. Her eyes widened with surprise as her mind understand just what she was seeing, laying by the foot of her bed was a single white feather, its ends touched with tan and brown.

* * *

Day 503

As night began to fall over the kingdoms, the Goblin King replayed the night before in his head. He had stood over Sarah as she slept, trailing his fingers over her smooth skin in time with her dream, making the dream stronger with his nearness. His own fingers had tingled with the sensation, even through the leather gloves. He stared at his hand as he replayed the moment in his head, a ghost of the touch returned with the memory. He made a fist, as if to hold on to the feeling.

"You were there! You went to her!" Mara's screams and accusations echoed through the Goblin Castle.

Jareth sat before the fire silently as the room darkened, indicating the queen's impending presence.

"You were there!" She repeated as she made her way to his chair. He looked up at her, the fire reflected red and orange in her black eyes. For anyone else it would be a terrifying sight. Jareth merely looked away, slightly bored with her outburst.

"I merely stood in the room while she had the dream. Besides, why are you even watching? I thought my methods sickened you, all the intense stares and seduction."

"I watch to make sure you don't tell her, and you almost did!"

"What would be the fun in telling her?" He asked, poking holes in her theory.

Mara seethed with frustrated anger. She knew she had to drop it, he hadn't told her the rules of the game, he hadn't broken any rules. Truthfully, she was angry that he had thought up the same strategy as her. Well, her tricks were a bit more dramatic than tingly touches.

Jareth rightfully took her silence as an admit of defeat. He smirked at her sullen face.

"I hate you so much." Mara bit out the words through her sharp, clenched teeth.

Jareth let out a hearty laugh at her words.

"Laugh all you want. You'll see what happens when you don't show me respect." She voice was low and menacing.

"You can't hurt me." He replied as his laughing died down.

"True, but there's someone I can." She pointed out before disappearing.

Jareth closed his eyes and shook his head. Poor little Sarah. He walked over to the window, by the time he reached it he was able to fly out of the room, silently making his way back to the human world.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: I do not own Labyrinth. Also, sorry for being gone sooooo long. I didn't mean to but life has been something else. We will be moving to Europe after the New Year, so I have been very busy preparing for that. Hopefully I'll get some more done before then and will have a chance once the move is complete, in between trying to learn some German, lol!**

* * *

Day 503

All day Sarah had felt a sense of foreboding. Even more than usual. Like the storm clouds that had been gathering all day, the feeling grew heavier as the minutes ticked on.

After going through the motions of her day, she found herself staring at her bed as if it were a death sentence. Her homework was finished, her teeth brushed, her pajamas on. There was nothing left to do to post pone the inevitable. She knew, _knew,_ the nightmares were waiting for her there. Reluctantly, she climbed into bed and turned off the light. Just then the gathering storm outside finally gave way, releasing a flash of lightning.

Sarah gasped as the lightning threw shadows on the walls, it looked as if her room was filled with people, they were tall with long, skinny arms hanging at their side. She turned on her light to find nothing, the shadows were gone but she could not figure out what had caused the shadows in the first place. There were no coat racks or hanging plants or anything at all in her room that would create such creepy shadows.

"Its all in your head, all of its in your head. You are not a little kid anymore, you're being ridiculous." She whispered to herself as she turned off the light again. This time she refused to open her eyes in the darkness.

Eventually she fell into a troubled sleep. The nightmares came early. The shadows were closing in on her, their long pointy fingers reaching out for her, no matter where she ran in her home, they were there. Finally, one caught her, seemingly ready to tear her apart as others gathered around in a silent, terrifying mob. Just before she was lost in the darkness, she saw a shimmer among the shadows, the shimmer came from a long bedazzled coat, Sarah looked up to see the Goblin King, a menacing grin on his lips.

Her eyes flew open, she was panting as her heart raced in her chest. Her panic rose as she realized she couldn't move. It was as if she had been tied to the bed, her eyes search around wildly as she tried to understand what was happening to her.

As her mind fought her body, Sarah notice movement at the end of her bed. A shadow moved in the darkness, slowly crawling towards her on the bed. Her nightmare had followed her into the world. She struggled harder but her limbs felt like lead. It was about to reach her when she noticed another coming up from the floor, she tried to screamed but only let out a muffled whine.

She moved her eyes to the light on her desk, if only she could reach it she could make it all stop she thought. She tried to ignore the darkness that as traveling up her legs and focus on the light. Reach up and turn it on her mind screamed.

Then, suddenly a flash of white flew past her window. A scratch of claws on glass and a screech of a barn owl cut through the night. Sarah felt the weight leave her arms and legs, she jumped out of bed and turned on the lamp. She looked around but the shadows were gone, her room filled with a warm light.

Sarah caught her breath and looked out her window to the darkness. She knew she would see him out there in the tree line. The rain had stopped sometime in the night, leaving an eerie stillness behind. The glowing silhouette of the owl stared back at her for a moment before taking flight, a shadow across the moon.

Jareth returned to his kingdom, fighting the need to throttle someone. Goblins were banned from the castle after nightfall, except for guards. He preferred peaceful nights, which was nearly impossible in the Goblin City. Right now, though, he wished he had one around to yell at, needing to unleash this anger on someone. He hated these nights, when Mara had access to Sarah and was determine to be near her, but the rain had made it impossible for him to fly.

* * *

The Shadow Men Mara used tonight were harmless, but using a waking dream was torture, and using his image again! Mara had gone too far, he could only imagine what nightmare creatures Mara was planning to use next.

He wanted to resist the urge, knowing Mara would be waiting for him, but he sighed and returned to his familiar owl form and flew over the forest to the highest tower of her castle.

She smiled her unsettling smile as she saw him approach. Her white face shining in the darkness.

"Why hello, Jareth, what a nice surprise."

"Cut the shit, Mara. Waking nightmares?! You're going to use waking nightmares on her?!" Jareth marched toward her as soon as he changed forms, his dark blue cape billowed out, disappearing into the night sky.

"At least I don't sneak into her room like some love-sick fool." Mara spat out with a look of disgust.

"Love sick-" Jareth yelled before stopping and taking a deep breath. Yelling at Mara was no use, she fed of his anger. "Love has nothing to do with this, I didn't stay in her room after she awoke. You're going to push her too far."

"Possibly, she does seem a rather fragile little thing." Mara replied nonchalantly.

"Don't do it again." Jareth warned through gritted teeth.

"No, I will. You'll certainly continue, so will I." Mara's skeletal fingers drew to fists, her temper flaring, making her look even more terrifying. Jareth imagined if she had solid legs she would be stamping her feet like a child.

"You will break her."

"Yes, or you will. She was never going to get out of this game intact, Jareth, you knew that when you agreed. You would get her heart, or I would get her mind." Her mouth spread into wide smile.

Jareth said nothing but stared into her unnerving face. The feeling of guilt tugged at him, he desperately fought to ignore it, not wanting to acknowledge it, afraid of discovering the root of his feelings.

He turned from Mara, ignoring her laugh as he took flight. As always, she watched him as long as she could, he could feel her eyes boring into him.

Silently, he appeared in Sarah's room. She had managed to fall back asleep, though her body was tense and her face was troubled and pinched.

"Sleep, Sarah." He whispered. With a twist of his hand an orb appeared. It flew off his fingers and landed on the girl. Her body relaxed and her face smoothed, a slight smile on her lips. He couldn't do anything about the nightmares, but at least he could give her peaceful sleep after.

* * *

 **I know, not very long. That being said, I think I am going to push this forward a bit. It will be too repetitive if I go on as long as I planned with round 2 of the wager, and round 3 is going to be very fun to write. What do you think? I think I can get this part of the story done in 2 chapters or so, probably pretty long chapters.**


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